"The greatly unfortunate aspect of Pearl Harbor is that it has absolutely nothing patriotic, warlike, or time-sensitive about it. This music could accompany a Free Willy film without much alteration.
"***

It
seems as if the wait for
this movie has been
years as the first trailer for
Pearl
Harbor teased
audiences back in early
2000. The
trailer, if such things
can be said about mere
trailers, was a
hit. With the
backdrop of his sublime
music for Thin Red
Line,
the trailer made quite
the lasting impression.
With the images and
sounds of the Pearl
Harbor trailer wedged in
many minds, it was
clear that the Zimmer
had lined up yet another
Hollywood-hit.
Taking on the task of
producing such a film
and accompanying score
was a huge and
treacherous
undertaking. The
film would sneak up on
no one, as all eyes have
been trained on it for
over a year.

Unfortunately,
the
score, but even moreso the
film, may have been self-sabotaged.
First, the early
effectiveness of the
original Pearl Harbor
trailer set very high
expectations for the
visuals and the
music. Second, taking pages
from past successful
films has clouded Pearl
Harbor's own
identity. These
two factors may hinder
one from easily
appreciating either.

The
choice of using Journey
to the Line from the Thin
Red Line has come back to bite Zimmer
and company. This choice was one the
best matches made for a trailer in some
time and that selection
of music has become
cemented to the
trailer's images.
The images were so
large and the
accompanying music so
deep that the two
together were unforgettably effective.
This resulted in a
scenario that made
it nearly impossible
for Zimmer to go
a vastly different
musical route for the
actual film's
score. In the end,
Zimmer's main theme,
used extensively
throughout the 3-hour
long film, reflects the
strong influence of
Journey to the Line, but
doesn't reach its sublime depths.

Big-budget, big-marketing,
films such as Pearl
Harbor are so often
doomed before they are
even released.
Taken at face value, Pearl
Harbor is an
enjoyable movie and
score. The
problems begin the
moment comparisons are
made...and human nature
can't help but do just
that. There have
already been a number of
high-quality Pearl
Harbor-films produced
over the decades.
This most recent telling
of the military tragedy
has not escaped the
wrath of comparison to
these earlier
films. Not only
that, but Pearl
Harbor seems to pull
from earlier box-office
and critically acclaimed
hits such as: Titanic
and Saving Private
Ryan.
Unfortunatley, From Here to
Eternity and Titanic did
the romantic/tragedy
aspect better, Tora Tora
Tora did the military
story better, and Saving
Private Ryan captured
the essence of war
better. Further,
There You'll Be (1) is a
decent song performed by
Faith Hill, but it
doesn't match the
feeling of Celine Dion's
My Heart Will Go On.
Combining so many
elements and angles into
one film makes it hard
to appreciate the whole
package on its
own. If that can
actually be done, then Pearl
Harbor is an
enjoyable film and
score.

Hans
Zimmer's score will
likely be touted highly
by many and take its
beating from many
others. There is good
reason for both.
Hans
Zimmer is able to let
the piano come the
forefront , which is a
pleasant rarity for
him. It helps to
communicate the
overriding emotional,
and romantic angle of the
film. It
takes some repeated
listens and at least one
viewing of the film for
the main themes to take
on a personality of
their own. The
title theme is
established in track 2,
Tennessee, and is also
heard, tenderly
performed in Brothers
(3). Zimmer
continues with this
softer side with the
secondary love theme
first heard in ...And
Then I Kissed Him
(4). This track
features the solitarily
evocative performance of
first, the piano, then
mandolin, and then
strings - building into
one of the scores best
moments as the theme
receives a full
performance by the
orchestra.

The
action sequences are
typically rousing as
most Media Ventures
action scores go.
Track 7, Attack, bears a
strong resemblance to
portions of Gladiator,
specifically regarding
percussions and the
technique employed to
build suspense and
communicate the
determined desperation
of the Japanese.
While War (8) may be the
most triumphant and
inspiring of the lot,
the essence of the film
can be summed up in
December 7th (7).
Here the depth of
Zimmer's synthesizers is
placed in the spotlight
to provide some of the
most poignant music of
the CD. Its a
truly emotional piece
and concludes with the
stunning yet solemn
choral performance.

A
bit more Japanese
influence in the score
would have gone a long
way in balancing the
score's texture .
There
is actually very little
Japanese-influenced-music
presented on the CD aside from Attack
(6), and not much more
in the lengthy
film. In addition
to the shakuhachi
performance of Dan
Kuramoto, soliciting
the talents of Jeff Rona
and his inspired
woodwind performances
would have brought a
nice balance to the
score as well had added
a bit more depth and
complexity to
it.

In
the end, Pearl Harbor is
a solid effort, but not
as awe inspiring as the
original trailer caused
so many to anticipate.
The film, knowingly or
unknowingly, references
a handful of well known
and loved films of
yesteryear and the
ensuing comparisons
diffuse almost any
opportunity for this
film or score to be
appreciated fully.
Be this as it may,
with successive listens,
this score takes on its
own personality and
becomes vastly more
enjoyable.
Depending upon the quality
of field for the rest of
2001, Zimmer may find
himself with another
Oscar nomination.

Track Listing and Ratings

Track

Title

Time

Rating

1

"There
You'll
Be" Faith
Hill

3:42

***

2

Tennessee

3:39

****

3

Brothers

4:04

****

4

,,,And
Then
I
Kissed
Him

5:36

****

5

I
Will
Come
Back

2:54

***

6

Attack

8:56

***

7

December
7th

5:07

****

8

War

5:15

****

9

Heart
of
a
Volunteer

7:05

****

Total
Running Time

46:18

*The
Experience-O-Meter
displays
the track to
track
listening
experience
of this
soundtrack
based on the
5-Star
rating given
to each
track.
It provides
a visual
depiction of
the ebbs and
flows of the
CD's
presentation
of the
soundtrack.